In “Morning Glory,” Diane Keaton plays a veteran TV morning-show host who takes on the silliest assignments just to keep herself on the air.

In reality, Keaton is one of Hollywood’s favorite actresses, and an Oscar winner with more than 40 feature films to her credit, including modern classics like “The Godfather,” “Reds” and “Annie Hall.”

The 64-year-old actress, director and producer says her enthusiasm hasn’t waned over her 40 years in film. Unlike her “Morning Glory” character, Colleen Peck, who is determined to keep her job at almost any cost, Keaton’s curiosity about people and their lives makes her work feel fresh, like there’s always something to discover.

She talked with The Associated Press about the changing face of entertainment and her latest on- and off-screen pursuits.

Q: How did you like working with Harrison Ford in this film? A: He is hilarious. I love working with him, are you kidding? He’s beautiful! What about that face? That face held up.

Q: You rap with 50 Cent in this movie. How was that? A: Humiliating. And you know, I do have a daughter who is 15, and that made it even more humiliating because she thought I was just such an idiot. And she wasn’t wrong.

Q: Colleen Peck is nothing like the journalist you played in “Reds.” Does “Morning Glory” have a serious message about journalism? A: It’s a hard job, that’s what I think it has to say. Then there’s the entertainment factor versus the hard news, and really, that’s the only real issue I can see that there’s any discussion on: When does it become selling out when it’s entertainment?

View full sizePARAMOUNTDiane Keaton, left, and Harrison Ford are shown in a scene from "Morning Glory."

You know my stance as Colleen Peck: Bring on the entertainment, man! Anything but the hard news or anything that makes people think, forget it.

Q: You’ve had movies out almost every year since you started making them. What is the secret to your success? A: I know there’s a host of people that I owe everything to. But then there’s also the fact that I’m curious, I really want to experience more than just sort of rolling over and giving up in some way. I’m not Colleen, but I really do love what I do to the extent that it’s a learning experience. They’re all different learning experiences and so much of it has to do with the people you work with and what you take away from those unique people that I’ve had the privilege to know intimately in short spurts ... I feel it’s more than just a role. It’s an overview of what that experience brings to you and I’ve been just in awe of the people that I’ve worked with.

Q: You’ve undoubtedly seen many changes over your 40 years in Hollywood. What have been most interesting? A: There have been massively radical changes in the world of the movies ... Let’s just take the role of animation in filmmaking. Now it’s to be highly respected. It used to be that animation was just sheer entertainment. Well, all of that is changed, and what Pixar has done is changed our way of seeing. They’ve changed storytelling. I just think that ‘Toy Story 3’ and ‘Up’ were amazing, great pictures, and I think, also, with the reinvention of how we use 3D, everything that’s going on ... it’s just morphing into something else. Watching YouTube, watching movies on your phone, being in a plane and constantly being inundated with visuals, even billboards are now moving billboards, it’s amazing what we’re living in.

Q: What other goals do you have for your career? A: Well, I have a lot of interests, as you know. I’m on the board of the Los Angeles Conservancy. I care about buildings and I care about restoring buildings and I care about protecting buildings from being torn down. I’m an animal advocate. I’m on the board of the Helen Woodward Animal Center, which is down in San Diego, a leading proponent of the no-kill situation for dogs and pets and people, adopt a dog, you know. Things like that. I’m doing a memoir of my life, which is basically about my mother, my relationship with my mother and her writing. I’m going to do another visual book about architecture again.

Q: What do you like to do when you’re not working? A: My son and my daughter are on swim team, and I love to go to the swim meets. I enjoy watching them swim. I enjoy watching them evolve, too. Dexter is my daughter, she’s about to be 15 in December, and Duke, my son, is 9. That keeps you on your feet and not too self involved.-- Sandy Cohen, Associated Press